Oh Yeah...The NFL Draft is this weekend

I sort of forgot, but the NFL Draft is this Thursday. Usually around this time, I'm well-read on a decent portion of the draft pool. I try to predict which player each team might draft. I sit and listen to all the analysis provided by "The Hairdo" Mel Kiper, Jr., and Todd McShay. It's a nice way to get excited for the upcoming season.

This year is different (for me, anyway). I know about the big names, and I know about the former Syracuse players. That's pretty much it. The reason being...

The strike.

With a work stoppage, I'm having a hard time getting excited about the 2011 season, mainly because I don't think there's going to be one. There is already a plan in place if the strike lasts into the season. If the NFL powers-that-be had that conversation, things don't look good. With the prospect of the season being cancelled, what is there to get excited about? How can there be giddy anticipation about what a player can do for a team if we aren't going to see him show his stuff?

I'll watch the draft, but the excitement might be curbed a little.

Oh Yeah...The NFL Draft is rh

Where does Edge go among the greats?

On Monday Night Raw, fans were surprised with the sudden news that Edge (real name Adam Copeland), a long-time WWE wrestler, would be retiring immediately. After meeting with doctors last week regarding numbness in is hands, Edge was diagnosed with cervical spinal stenosis, a bone disease involving the narrowing of the spinal canal. Doctors advised him to retire immediately. According to reports, the WWE creative team essentially gave Edge and open mic for Monday night's live broadcast, and allowed him to go out and make a retirement speech. During this emotional de facto shoot promo, Edge talked about how he became a wrestling fan, his career, and he thanked the fans for their support. The speech can be viewed here.

Watching this segment last night, I wasn't sure if it was real. I was expecting Alberto Del Rio to ride out to his music in a luxury car and beat up Edge, or cut a promo insulting him. I expected Christian to come out to the ring and give some kind of pep talk to his long-time friend, encouraging him to keep wrestling. In general, I was expecting it to be a work. But it wasn't. It was real, and I witnessed, arguably, one of the most dramatic moments ever on a WWE broadcast.

With Edge retiring, it begs the question, 'where does he belong among the greats of the wrestling business?'

There's no denying that Edge had a great career. In WWE, he was a triple crown champion, won the King of the Ring, and was the first ever Money in the Bank winner. On a more general level, he managed to stick around WWE for about 14 years, which is impressive when you realize how few Attitude-era wrestlers are still with the company. These accomplishments will definitely get him into the WWE Hall of Fame.

In terms of where he ranks among the all-time greats of the wrestling business, I'm not sure I would necessarily put him on the same level as Hogan, Flair, The Rock, Sting, Steve Austin, and The Undertaker. Guys like that, in their prime, were the sort that wrestling companies could build their entire product around. Edge was a talented wrestler, but never, in my eyes, was a guy who a wrestling company could build everything around. He was missing that 'it' factor that could draw money like sharks to blood. However, I would put him on the same level as guys like Terry Funk, Jake "The Snake Roberts, "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig, and Dusty Rhodes. He's a guy who could go out to the ring, have a great match, entertain the fans, and put a few butts in the seats. Essentially, a great "worker," as they call it in the business. Edge fits that criteria. He was a great worker, and because of it, WWE got a ton of mileage out of him, and he will always be remembered fondly by wrestling fans.

To the College Football Analysts on ESPN: Spring Football Sould Be Taken Seriously

Each year around this time, Spring football practices get under way at most schools. And each year, I watch College Football Live on ESPN to get the lowdown on the some of the top teams. It's a great way to familiarize myself with some of the names I'll be hearing throughout the upcoming season, key games, and what kind of results to expect from each team.

In addition to what was already mentioned, there is something else that happens every time this year. During one of these Spring football feature broadcasts, at least one analyst says 'fans take Spring Ball too seriously.'

I am officially putting all the College Football analysts at ESPN on notice. If I hear this from anyone, and that means ANYONE, again, I'm going to write a letter full of toilet language, curse words, and childish insults to all of you. I promise this letter will be so intense, once you read it, you will cry, your hair will fall out, your lawn will die, and any wallpaper in your house will peel immediately.

Fans should take Spring Ball seriously if they really care about the team. It's the de facto starting point for the season. Teams come together on the field in an organized manner for the first time since last seasons end. With players departing every year, these practices exclusively feature the group that will be lining up together throughout the upcoming season. Most of the recruits aren't there, but unless any of them are something really special, the numbers you see on the field during these practices, barring injuries and discipline cases, are the numbers you'll be seeing from Labor Day weekend onward toward Thanksgiving and bowl season. These are teenagers and young men whose every triumph (or failure) will effect our happiness. This is the team.

On top of that, the players and coaches take these practices very seriously. This is the time when athletes can push for playing time in the fall. On the flip side, coaches see which players are going to possibly make an impact, and which players will be "used to provide depth," or in fan language, which players will have the cleanest jerseys after the games. The players and coaches also emphasize these practices to brush up on their schemes, work on fundamentals, and to get a taste of competition before the long summer layoff. If these sessions mean so much to the players and coaches, why shouldn't they mean as much to the fans?

And lets not forget, college football, like it or not, is a business. Schools prominently feature these practices to drum up fan interest. If things look good now, fans will jump on the bandwagon, pony up, and buy tickets. Schools want fans to take these practices seriously, or else it means business is in the toilet.

I would also like to point out the hypocrisy that the analysts exhibit. In any instance when a team or a player looks great during a Spring Game, they always say that it doesn't mean that much. However, when there are things that look bad during the Spring Game, the criticism is in huge supply. Make up your minds, people!

There. Consider yourselves warned.

Urban Meyer Gets Schooled by Joe Tessitore and Chris Spielman

Fans know Urban Meyer as a college football coaching machine. Wherever he has been a head coach, the fans at that school got the moon. In two seasons at Bowling Green, he went 17-6, implemented the spread offense, and made QB Omar Jacobs into a fringe NFL prospect. In two seasons at Utah, he went 22-2 (one of those seasons being a perfect 12-0), won two Mountain West Conference titles, and his 2004 team became the first non-AQ team to receive a BCS bid since the system's inception in 1998, going on to beat Pitt in the Fiesta Bowl. At Florida, he went 65-15, won two national titles, one division title, and coached Tim Tebow into being a Heisman Trophy winner. When it comes to college football, Urban Meyer knows stuff about things.

In the latter years at Florida, Meyer dealt with health problems, player arrests, and had to rebuild his team due to players leaving for the NFL. After the 2010 season in which The Gators finished a disappointing 8-5, Meyer was burnt out and decided to leave coaching. ESPN quickly snatched him up and gave him a job as a college football analyst.

With spring ball under way at most schools, we're seeing Urban Meyer, the broadcast journalist, for the first time.

On Sunday, ESPN aired its annual Spring Game spotlight, this year covering Texas' scrimmage. Meyer was calling the game alongside long-time ESPN analysts Chris Spielman and Joe Tessitore. The post-game wrap-up can be viewed here or below.




In this video, we see just how different Meyer's world is now. Toward the end, Tessitore asks both analysts to predict The Longhorns' 2011 record. Spielman goes first and provides his prediction (an 8-4 season) and a strong argument to back it up. When Meyer's turn comes up, he gives his prediction (10-2), which is then followed by shallow observations and critiques. Tessitore chimes in and basically takes Meyer to the woodshed and provides reasons why his prediction is far-fetched. I hadn't seen Urban Meyer get schooled like that since the 2009 SEC Championship Game. The only thing missing was Tim Tebow crying like a Junior High School girl who just arrived home and realized she left her oboe on the school bus.

When you're the head coach at a Division 1 school, you can get away with answering questions with little or superficial elaboration. As an analyst, you can't. Welcome to broadcasting, Urban.

Okay, so it really wasn't a knee-jerk reaction...Wrestlemania really stunk

I decided to sleep on it. I went to work. I went to the gym. I thought about my opinion of the show all day. 'Was it me?' 'Did I have a false sense of entitlement?' 'Was I being unfair?' 'Did I expect too much?' These questions swirled in my head all day. And now, it's a day later, and I still feel the same way as I did when Wrestlemania ended. The show really fell short of expectation in my mind.

I'll get right to it.

I expected great, entertaining matches, and matches were not all that great. The matches were either squash matches (The 8-man tag team match, the Snooki match), boring and pointless (Cole/Lawler), or they were TV-quality (all the rest). Now, I get the shift in focus of WWE. They're moving away from wrestling and trying to be more of an entertainment show. Even so, these matches fell short of what I, and what I think most people, expected for Wrestlemania. The lone exception was the Undertaker/HHH match. One of my friends referred to it as epic. I wouldn't go that far, but these two went to the ring, left it all out there, hit some great spots, and incorporated great ring psychology. While both wrestlers are past their primes, they gave all they had. Easily, it was the best match of the show. Other than that, it was a largely unimpressive display.

The show had horrible, unnecessary filler segments that had no business being on the broadcast. Filler segments are fine for TV. Wrestlers get hurt, things take longer than expected....on a live show, spit happens. But this was Wrestlemania. The biggest show of the year. The show that the company looks forward to and plans for with great anticipation. I don't care if this is "sports entertainment." Wrestlemania is not the place for cannon fodder, and the show was riddled with it.

Lastly, The Rock's involvement in the show was poorly done. Yes, he was the host. Yes, he was billed as being apart of the show. But the writers seemed to have scripted the show to be The Rock's show, which, frankly, is bullshit. Wrestlemania should be about the matches, and it should be about the talent. Essentially, the product is the talent. You're selling the talent to the fans. The Rock opening the show, doing so many of the aforementioned filler segments, interfereing in the main event, then closing the show showed how misplaced the focus was.

I read online that fans who attended the show live said it was great, and the atmosphere was very cool. I wish that feeling could have come through the TV screen.

Feedback is welcome. What did everyone else think, now that a day has passed and it's all sunk in?

Ring of Honor Delivers

Consider me one of the wrestling fans Ring of Honor grabbed during this weekend's run of shows.

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, Ring of Honor, in an attempt to take advantage of the buzz Wrestlemania has created, went to Atlanta and had a run of two shows at the Center Stage Theater. For 10 bucks a show, I ponied up and watched their Friday night show and the Saturday afternoon show.

While I didn't blindly love every match like most ROH fans seem to do, I thought both shows were very good. In contrast to WWE, the company has a product based around technical wrestling. These matches feature athletic performers who aren't necessarily going to charm your face off with a promo, but can work great, entertaining matches. The in-ring product really is what makes their shows.

Also mentioned previously, Ring of Honor's TV deal with HDNet is coming to an end. They will air the final episode on the network tomorrow night. While I am a fan of WWE, their shows do lack solid in-ring action, which has come under heavy criticism from wrestling fans. Hopefully, Ring of Honor can secure a new deal soon, and fulfill the needs of fans looking for great wrestling matches week-in and week-out.

Why to be excited about College Football

There's a saying in show business that there's no such thing as bad press. For the sake of College Football, the sport I, and so many other people, love, I sure as hell hope so.

Going back to the beginning of last season, college football has been trapped under a rain cloud. Players have had inappropriate contact with agents. Players have taken money. Coaches broke rules. Bowl CEOs used money inappropriately. Schools have paid third-party brokers for players. Bad things have been uncovered. Rather than rehash all that ugliness by going into specifics, let's just leave it at that.

I'm tired of it. I'm tired of hearing who did what. I'm tired of reading the columnists give their smug, uppity opinions about who should be fired or what kind of social impact these events will have on the sport and society. Enough already.

Here, I'm going to focus on the positive. I'm going to be a cheerleader. I don't care if it's April. I don't care if we're barely into Baseball season. I can't take it anymore. I'm going to itemize, some kind of order, 5 reasons why fans should be excited about the upcoming season.

5. Conference Realignment - This year, Nebraska moves to the Big Ten. Colorado and Utah move to the Pac-12. Boise State moves to the Mountain West. The new matchups - Nebraska vs. The Big Ten, Utah vs. BCS competition week in and week out- are exciting.

4. The Fans - The on-the-field action is what is most important. However, make no mistake about it, the fans of college football are so vital to the game. They show up on gameday clad in crazy clothes, faces painted, and they go nuts for their respective teams. Their enthusiasm is a needed and welcome element to the game!




3. Lee Corso - Yes, he's old. Yes, he adds more of the "sweet old man" element than he does credible football analysis. But come on, seeing him obnoxiously point that pencil, hearing him say "not so fast, my friend".........come on. What would Saturday mornings in the Fall be without him?




2.Throwback Uniforms - Who cares if they're gimmicky. Who cares if they're used to sell merchandise. History and tradition are important to college football. Throwback jerseys are a nice way to celebrate that.





1. (and most important) THERE IS GOING TO BE A SEASON!!!! There will be no picture here. There will not be much of an explanation. Hang your hat on the fact that on college campuses, come Labor Day weekend, we'll have toe to leather.

There. get excited.

TNA's Lack of Creativity This Week Reduces them to the Role of 'Spectator'

This week, the only things that were missing from Impact were a giant bucket of popcorn, a seat cushion, a large soda, and one of those obnoxious foam fingers fans wear to indicate "they're #1."

In the midst of Wrestlemania week, which is the biggest week in the wrestling business, TNA aired an episode that lacked excitement, creativity, and guts.

In case you missed it above, this is Wrestlemania week. WWE "superstars" are in Atlanta right now smiling for cameras, yucking it up with the local media, appearing on TV shows (both local and national), and soaking up a ton of attention. Big stuff.

But wait.....there's more.

Ring of Honor and Dragon gate USA are also in Atlanta. Both companies are running shows this weekend, two-a-piece to be exact. This ballsy attempt to get exposure has generated a ton of buzz among wrestling fans.

So, taking into account all that's going on this week in and around the Georgia Dome, tonight we saw an episode of Impact that was just the same as every other episode. We saw the same meaningless matches, the same promos, and the same backstage segments that we see every week. I'm not saying that a great episode this week would have blown Wrestlemania and the other shows out of the water. What I'm saying is the company could have done much more to make this week's show exciting for the sake of staying relevant to some degree. For example, they could have done something similar to a Raw Roullette night. They could have had more specialty matches, such as Ultimate X, King of the Mountain, or any other TNA specialty match. While wrestling fans chatter it up about WWE, Ring of Honor, and Dragon Gate USA, nobody is talking about TNA. An exciting, different episode could have changed that.

Tonight, TNA became a spectator. In the face of competition, they did nothing to try and step up their game and offer something special to wrestling fans.

Ring of Honor and Dragon Gate USA Have The Right Idea for 'Mania Weekend

Lets face it, unless you work for WWE, during Wrestlemania weekend, if you're in the wrestling business, you're on the outside looking in. Wrestlemania is the biggest wrestling show of the year. It's hard to compete with a show that has 27 years of history on its side. With that said, Two small wrestling companies have the right idea.

Ring of Honor and Dragon Gate USA, two smaller US promotions, are going to Atlanta, the host city for Wrestlemania XXVII, and running shows during the weekend.

Ring of Honor's weekend run, "Honor Takes Center Stage," will take place at The Center Stage Theater on Friday night, April 1st, and Saturday afternoon, April 2nd, for a matinee show. Each show can be seen on gofightlive.com. You can buy the shows individually, or if you're interested in buying both shows, you can purchase both at the same time for one price. Ring of Honor, which some consider to be the #3 wrestling promotion behind WWE and TNA, offers fans a product concentrated heavily on in-ring action. The roster is full of talent that showcases mostly technical wrestling. The crowd at a ROH show is similar to the crowd that was seen on ECW's TV shows back in the 90's. Fans really get into the show, and are enthusiastic with their reactions to the performance.

Dragon Gate USA, the international expansion of the Japanese company, Dragon Gate, will put on two shows this weekend as well, but will perform at The Presidential Ballroom. The first show takes place on the 2nd at night. The other is a matinee show on the 3rd, the day of Wrestlemania. DGUSA will broadcast Saturday night's show at wwnlive.com. DGUSA mixes talent from their Japanese promotion with talent signed to their American brand. Similar to ROH, Dragon Gate USA's brand of wrestling focuses mainly on the in-ring action. The matches are a little more diverse, showcasing poruresu, technical wrestling, and cruiserweight/high-flying action. While the in-ring part of the show is the focus, the company does have good mic workers who can get the audience going. Another similarity to ROH is the crowd. Again, the fans at DGUSA's shows really invest themselves in the show and are very vocal.

The idea, to go to Atlanta and perform these shows during 'Mania weekend, is very clever. Instead of trying to compete with WWE or being dwarfed by Wrestlemania, both companies are using the hoopla of the big event to capitalize. With thousands of people descending upon Atlanta, this is a great opportunity for both companies to get some exposure and to have their product seen by their target audience...wrestling fans.

In addition, this weekend is a bit of a make or break time for each company. Ring of Honor's weekly Monday night TV show, Ring Of Honor Wrestling, will air its last episode on Monday. HDnet, which was carrying the show, chose not to renew their contract with ROH, leaving the promotion without a network to broadcast on. DGUSA currently does not have a TV deal. Right now, their shows are run about once a month and are broadcast solely on iPPV sites or on PPV. With a strong showing this weekend, both companies can potentially show TV networks enough to secure a weekly TV slot.

As a wrestling fan, I'm rooting for these little guys. As I mentioned in a previous blog, I think competition is great for the wrestling business. Yes, WWE is huge. Yes, TNA has a lot of name-brand talent. But this weekend is a start. If these small companies can use these shows as a launching pad for bigger things, fans would have more options. Once fans have options, things get interesting (See: Monday Night War, WCW, ECW).

Go-Home Raw, Which Match Will Steal the Show?, Taker/HHH/Sting

-Last night, WWE had the go-home Monday Night Raw, the last show before Wrestlemania. This was the absolute last chance to add juice to any storylines since the company will not broadcast a proper Friday Night Smackdown, instead just airing two random pre-taped matches and promotional videos to hype 'Mania.

The show did a great job of hyping the two money matches. They had The Undertaker and Triple H do a segment to hype their match, highlighting 'Taker's undefeated 'Mania streak and building up HHH as a different, meaner competitor than Shawn Michaels, who lost two years in a row to 'Taker at Wrestlemanias 25 and 26. Michaels showed up on Raw to add more drama (he's HHH's real-life good friend and has wrestled 'Taker a lot over the years). The buildup for this match has been mostly filler, but this segment added a little more fuel to the fire.

The other segment that hyped the other money match, John Cena vs. WWE Champ The Miz, was so entertaining. Added to this build-up has been Cena's back-and-forth promo battle with Wrestlemania host The Rock. They finally met face to face, and things got physical. The Miz and The Rock also had words, which also became physical. It ended with Cena hitting the Attitude Adjustment on The Rock.

Both these segments probably added some PPV buys.

-I'm going to call it right here, CM Punk vs. Randy Orton will steal the show. This matchup pits two of the best workers in the business against each other. Punk is a fantastic ring psychologist. Orton is in his prime. I think this has the ingredients to be a big one.


-As I mentioned above, the segment 'Taker and Tripe H did on Raw helped build the match a little bit more, but my excitement for this one isn't exactly sky high.

WWE has failed to acknowledge this, but we've seen this match before. Remember Triple H jobbing cleanly to The Undertaker at 'Mania 17? I do. It was a solid match, and both wrestlers stepped it up on that night. I'm sure WWE will book Sunday's match to the best of their ability, but I'm having trouble getting up for a match that I've seen before, only this time, both wrestlers are older and banged up.

The other element that has killed this one is the 'what could have been' factor. Months ago, it was reported by multiple online sources that WWE was trying to get Sting for Wrestlemania to possibly face The Undertaker. Considering that Sting has never worked for WWE, that would have been a huge match between two legit wrestling legends.

Jim Ross wrote in his blog back in early February, "I still say that there would likely be a large part of the WWE TV audience that only watches WWE that would have to become familiar with the Stinger's body of work. Not that it couldn't be done, it could, but that matter would have to be addressed." While Good Ol' JR wasn't totally off-base, anyone who was a fan when 'Taker was in his prime would probably know who Sting is, and also would remember that he was labeled "The Franchise of WCW." I think WWE dropped the ball on this one. I think if they made Sting a generous offer, made some agreement to give him some sort of access to his archived footage, maybe, while their foot is in the door, get him to agree to do one follow-up match at another Pay-Per-View, I think they would've landed him. In doing so, they would've given fans something truly unique and special.

5 days, kids.

The SU Marketing Machine Moves On

As spring practice rolls on for the Syracuse Football team, the team made a road trip to Rochester on Saturday to practice at Sahlen's Stadium. The team practiced for two hours, then sat at tables and signed autographs for fans.

The purpose of having this "road" practice was to generate interest in the team and to reconnect with the fans in Western New York.

“I think we have lost some people from this area,” head coach Doug Marrone said after practice. “Going back to my playing days, we had a large fan base here, and we had a lot of players from the Rochester area.”

I think this "road practice" idea was a smart one. I'm glad that the school is marketing the team so well. While it's not the greatest thing to point out, college football is a business. For the schools, they have to do everything they can to push the product (that would be the team).

The school has done quite a bit to increase the exposure of the SU Football program. There's an agreement with the New Meadowlands Stadium (home of the New York Jets and Giants) to host one "home" game there every other season starting in 2019. This is in addition to the other games already scheduled to be played there (USC in 2012, Penn State in 2013, Notre Dame in 2014 & 2016). I'm curious to see if SU makes a deal with Ralph Wilson Stadium, the home stadium of the Bills, to have a similar arrangement on the year they aren't playing at the Meadowlands. If the school is serious about getting Western New York back, I think this would be an awesome idea.

As an alumnus, I think this is all exciting. I (unfortunately) remember the Greg Robinson years, and to see the program in such demand is great. This exposure can help the school increase the fan base. The bigger the fan base, the better the bowl game the team can get if/when they become bowl-eligible.

Some fans are not that excited about these new developments. The hometown fans are unhappy about the school depriving them of seeing the team play a big-time opponent at the Carrier Dome. While I see their point, I, again, must bring up the business part of college football. It wasn't too long ago that the football team was losing money every year. In fact, 2009 was the first time in many years that Syracuse University didn't lose money on football team. It's hard to turn a buck in this business. Playing these neutral site games can add money to the coffers and improve the program (facilities, equipment, travel, paycheck games, etc.).

Smackdown, Michael Cole, Kurt Angle

It's been a lazy weekend. Nothing big went on around here. Now that my Sunday chores are done, here are some small things:

-This Friday was the last Smackdown before Wrestlemania. The show itself wasn't terrible, but for the last show before Wrestlemania, I thought it was a little weak. I can't quite put my finger on it, but this show should have left the viewer wanting to see Wrestlemania as soon as possible. I didn't get that feeling from this show.

I was glad to see WWE put the Intercontinental Title on Wade Barrett, who beat Kofi Kingston for the belt. He's one of the top heels in the company, and a future big star. Having a belt on him makes total sense and adds credibility to The Corre, his heel faction. On the other side of this, something must be up with Kingston. He's been used very sparingly, which is a shock since he was the IC Champ until Friday's broadcast. Having him drop the belt on TV rather than at 'Mania indicates he's either injured (which didn't look that way from the match) or he's in someone's doghouse backstage if they wouldn't even give him the courtesy of a Wrestlemania appearance/payout to drop the belt.

-Speaking of doghouses, I'm curious what will become of Michael Cole. Over the weekend, Cole took to his twitter account and, while in character, called fellow Smackdown announcer Josh Matthews a gay slur. Cole has since apologized. This story has been picked up by TMZ.com and other mainstream media outlets, and is bringing a lot of negative attention to WWE. Earlier this year, GLAAD was upset about a promo that John Cena cut that they felt was insensitive. WWE apologized for the incident and promised it would not happen again. Michael Cole, who is involved in a major storyline right now, is scheduled to wrestle Jerry "The King" Lawler at Wrestlemania. I'm curious to see if this match still happens.


-Kurt Angle was arrested on Friday in Grand Forks, North Dakota for being in control of a motor vehicle while intoxicated. He wasn't actually driving the car, so it wasn't a full-blown DWI. He was taken into custody after failing a field sobriety test. He was in town for a TNA house show.

On twitter, Angle claimed "I was not drunk. I was in ice storm and my car slid into 3 ft of snow median. I called police 4 help. They had other plans. I was stuck and wanted to go to my hotel. I was not passed out drunk."

This hasn't been a good few weeks for TNA talent and their chemical habits. First, Jeff Hardy shows up to the Victory Road Pay-Per-View messed up. Now this? Since wrestlers are independent contractors, TNA isn't going to fire him over this, but it's bad press. Something tells me if there are more incidents like this, someone will walk the plank.

'Less than a week until Wrestlemania.

A Strong Showing for TNA Tonight

In my last post, I touched on the topic of competition in the wrestling business these days. I was critical of TNA's product, calling it second rate and not on the level of WWE.

While TNA still has a long way to go, I thought tonight's show was well done.The segments were entertaining, the matches were better than usual, and they got the name stars on TV.

I thought the opening segment with Mr. Anderson (....Anderson) was solid. The storyline with Bischoff and Hogan keeping him from a title rematch has developed well. Anderson isn't a great athlete, and he's not ever going to be confused with Kurt Angle in terms of wrestling ability, but he is great on the mic. His promo during this opening segment was funny and grabbed the crowd's attention. Pairing him with RVD, who can also make a case for a rematch, makes good sense. With the exception of the blown Rolling Thunder spot, their match at the end of the show with Sting as the special enforcer was good. It's old news by now, but re-signing Sting back was a fantastic get. There was a ton of buzz about WWE trying to get him for Wrestlemania. Having him back and putting the title belt on him has pumped up the fans.

The Pope/Samoa Joe pairing has worked. Joe isn't great on the mic, but can wrestle. Pope, unlike Joe, is a good mic worker, and has done well at drawing heat. This has brought this story along well. Tonight's match between him and Joe's Sidekick, Okada, was a little but squash-like, but turned up the heat even more.

Abyss' return was a nice surprise. TNA needs more of the younger talent to be featured, and his return was well-done, coming in and cleaning house during the Fortune/Immortal clash. It was followed by a great promo.

This is just a general comment...Matt Hardy does nothing for this show. He is out of shape, his matches suck, and his segments are not well-received by the fans. If you take him off the show, nothing would be missing. The show would be the same with or without him. I generally don't have an issue with bringing in older talent, but this was a waste.

Those were the highlights. Generally, this was not a bad show tonight. Hopefully they have more like that.

The End of Competition: 10 Years Gone

During my morning gander at my RSS feeds, I did the usual checkup on some wrestling dirt sheets. One site brought to my attention a huge anniversary. 10 years ago today, it was formally announced that WWE had purchased WCW. Not only that, April 4 will mark the 10 year anniversary of ECW filing for Bankruptcy. WWE would eventually buy all ECW assets. These two events officially marked the end of the Monday Night War era, and the end of competition.

This was a memorable time, to say the least. From 1995 to 2001, fans were spoiled with some of the most exciting wrestling in the history of the business. There were fresh, exciting storylines that were edgy. Big stars emerged, and fans were glued to their TV sets to see which wrestlers would jump ship to a new show. There were great matches that involved big spots and violence. Since both shows aired at the same time (9pm-11pm ET every Monday) on different networks, WWE and WCW were involved in an extremely competitive ratings war. The competition was so heated that during the time when WWE's show, Monday Night Raw, was taped, WCW Vice President Eric Bischoff used to send someone to the Raw TV taping to find out the results of the show, then subsequently gave away these results at the beginning of the live Monday Nitro. Raw eventually became a live show because of this. ECW, the smallest of "The Big Three," did not have a prime time show on Monday nights, and thus, was not apart of the competition directly. However, both WWE and WCW constantly raided ECW's talent roster and copied a lot of their ideas. In spite of these setbacks, the company thrived, offering a violent, athletic alternative to fans, all the while operating on a shoestring budget.

WCW's product eventually deteriorated, and by 2000, there was a significant drop-off in TV ratings. The end came when WCW's parent company, Time Warner, merged with AOL. The new regime wanted to move ahead without pro wrestling, and began listening to purchase offers from interested parties, eventually selling to WWE. ECW's product remained strong throughout it's history, but due to poor business management, the company folded in 2001.

10 years later, the wrestling business is quite different without serious competition. Since WWE no longer needs shock value to attract viewers, the product has gone back to being more family-friendly. Matches involve lesser high risks and move at a slower pace. Blood and hardcore violence have been phased out. WWE features less freakishly muscular wrestlers and more wrestlers with an athletic look. Since monthly Pay-Per-Views came about from competition, these shows now don't hold the same prestige. The product is enjoyable, and there's still some excitement, but WWE is not the same as it was when it was competing with WCW.

I know you're thinking, 'what about Total Nonstop Action?' Yeah. Exactly. What about it? TNA, as a concept, is great. Having a second wrestling company is something fans want. Consumers like to have options. But I wouldn't go say TNA is competition. Outside of some big-names and the X Division, TNA doesn't really offer anything different or exciting to fans. The matches aren't anything special, and the storylines aren't that intriguing or take too many twists and turns. Their weekly show, TNA Impact, is taped in a TV studio at Universal Studios Florida, which gives off a vibe of unimportance. Having the show take place every week from the same venue, there isn't that special feeling when something big happens. Additionally, the audience is made up of people that were either shuffled in from the amusement park who aren't necessarily wrestling fans, or fans who regularly attend the show and are overexposed to the product. This doesn't have the same vibe as an arena crowd in a frenzy. These elements put the company very distant 2nd place, and nowhere close to being on the same level as WWE.

I hope things change soon. I would enjoy seeing TNA give WWE a run for it's money. I think all wrestling fans would enjoy another competition similar to what was seen in the 90's. If I've learned anything from watching wrestling over the years, it's that anything can happen. Maybe in the next 10 years, we will see TNA become really big and start to be a threat. I guess we'll just have to watch.

All Quiet on the Hardy Front

Last Sunday at TNA's Victory Road Pay Per View event, TNA Heavyweight Champion Sting and Jeff Hardy were scheduled to have a title match. This was the main event, and had been used in commercials and press releases to advertise the show. According to TNA backstage sources and multiple wrestling news sites, Jeff Hardy showed up to the event and was described to be "in no condition to wrestle." After conferring backstage on how to best handle the situation, TNA creative, management, and both wrestlers agreed to still have the match. After ring entrances and other stalling tactics, the match lasted about 1:28. You can view the match here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lckr9OLR2Ow



During Hardy's entrance, he stumbles a bit and almost trips on the steps going into the ring. Additionally, after the match, Sting looks visibly upset. As the crowd chants "Bullshit" in unison, Sting can be heard yelling "I agree."

The night after Victory Road, Hardy showed up to the Impact Zone for the TV tapings, and was immediately sent home. Due to TNA's routine of taping the next two week's shows on back to back nights, this ensured that he would be kept of the air for at least two weeks. TNA has also taken him off all live events. In addition to Hardy's de facto suspension, TNA attempted to further save face by offering fans who purchased the Pay-Per-View six months of free access to the company's online On Demand service.

And so here we are, over one week later. Things have calmed down a bit. TNA performed some damage control, and things are moving forward. While there really isn't any pressure to come to a complete resolution right away, the question now is what will TNA do with Jeff Hardy?

To backtrack, Hardy isn't exactly a stranger to running into problems. A former WWE star, Hardy had two stints with the company, both of which were marred by no-shows, tardiness to events, poor performance, and drug issues. His first stint with the company ended in 2003, when WWE released him after failed drug tests and his refusal to enter a drug rehab program. In September 2009, Hardy's house was raided by Law Enforcement. Police found 262 Vicodin prescription pills, 180 soma prescription pills, 555 milliliters of anabolic steroids, a residual amount of powder cocaine, and drug paraphernalia. He was charged with drug trafficking and possession of anabolic steroids. The case has been continued multiple times, and Hardy is still awaiting trial. As of right now, he is due back in court on April 20, 2011.

On the surface, this situation seems cut and dry. Firing someone who shows up to work under the influence of drugs seems like a no-brainer. Unfortunately, there's more to it than that. Jeff Hardy is a star. He draws money for TNA, and while he may be past his prime, he can still have good matches. Unlike WWE, which has a full cupboard of talent and a developmental territory to draw from, TNA needs all the help they can get to stay as competitive as can be. Dismissing Hardy would mean giving up potential opportunities to draw money. Another concern is if the company does decide to cut ties, and Hardy miraculously avoids jail time for his drug charges, there's an outside possibility WWE may give him one more shot. Did you hear the pop Kevin Nash got at the Royal Rumble? Wrestling fans have a long-term memory. WWE fans would eat that up. TNA would essentially be handing the competition an attraction.

Of course, if Hardy ends up being a guest of the government, these are all moot points. In any event, there's definitely a lot for TNA to think about.

So...WWE isn't a wrestling company?

Credit: wrestlinginc.com

It's World WRESTLING Entertainment, right?

Recently, TVWeek.com ran a story with the headline "Drew Carey inducted into pro wrestling Hall of Fame." The story was a write-up of Carey's impending induction into the WWE Hall of Fame as this year's celebrity inductee. WWE (which, in case you missed the opening line, stands for World WRESTLING Entertainment) demanded that the website change the wording of the headline. The site claims that they received an email from WWE publicist Kellie Baldyga saying that the company is "no longer a wrestling company but rather a global entertainment company with a movie studio, international licensing deals, publisher of three magazines, consumer good distributor and more." The publicist continued "No, we don't do wrestling events. They're entertainments. And we don't call them wrestlers. They're superstars and divas." TVWeek.com refused to change their headline, and instead pulled the story altogether from the website. Good for them.

So let's get this straight, WWE. You were getting mainstream press just two weeks away from the biggest show of the year (which we all know you looooove) and you complained because the headline used terminology that you didn't like, but explained dead-on what it is you do?

I feel like this incident is symbolic of what people think of this term, and WWE's persistence in getting everyone to use it. It's ridiculous! Does it really matter? In my completely relevant an important opinion, no, it doesn't. However, what is important, in terms of longevity, is the business. People buy the merchandise. People watch the shows. People sit through the movies, barf bag in hand. And specific to this case, the media covers the product. Who cares what they call it. If you're an 18 year old guy, and Traci Lords walks up to you and tells you she wants you to wear her pelvis like a gas mask, are you going to say 'no' because she used the word pelvis instead of saying "pubic region?" I don't think so!

WWE needs to give it a rest with this nomenclature business and be glad that people are talking about their product.

Is there going to be NFL Football this year?

Usually, every year around this time, football fans (that includes the good-looking guy who writes this blog) are getting pumped. Hope springs eternal, and every fan usually is jacked up about the prospect of their team being better with new acquisitions. The NFL Draft makes fans salivate about the possible future of their team. Free agent signings adds experience and potential immediate impact to a team. Of course, the real truth comes to light when the pads start cracking, but this excitement is what makes the NFL world go 'round. This is what puts tukhuses in the seats in the fall. It's what sells jerseys. "Oh, Billy Jack Millionaire just signed a contract to play for my team this year!!! I'm buying his jersey right now! Not only that, I want to buy my ticket to the games this year because he's the missing piece of the puzzle, and they will go to the Super Bowl!" The business that is generated from the off-season activity is equally as important as the business from the in-season activity.

But, not this year. The NFL is involved in a work stoppage. The NFL Owners and NFL Players Association are involved in a heated negotiation of a new collective bargaining agreement. The Owners claim the Players are jerking them around by showing up to meetings with "models" rather than proposals for a new deal. The Players are accusing the commissioner of being a liar. The union has proclaimed itself as a trade organization, and has brought a lawsuit against the NFL on the grounds that the lockout has rendered it impossible to earn bonuses in contracts. It's a mess.

Fans don't care about any of this. I would venture to say that nobody really has a horse in this race. It's just business. Fans care about one thing:

Will there be a season?

It comes down to that. Will we be buying your shit in the fall? Will I have to buy a Hartford Colonials hat? This is what it comes down to.

If the NHL and MLB has taught us anything, strikes are bad for the sports business. The NFL needs to figure this out, or fans will jump ship.

My Response to WWE's Top 50 Superstars of All Time DVD

HaShem Bless streaming Netflix! Last night, my pre-wife had a girls night, which gave me free reign over the Roku. While searching for stuff to watch, I took notice of all the WWE titles that were available. Time was was on my side, so I watched all of them (except for the John Cena titles. He may draw mucho dinero for WWE, but all he draws from this guy is vomit from the mouth. He is so f'n bubble gum!). The one title that got my opinion juice flowing was the "Top 50 Superstars of All Time" special. Here is the list minus all the mental masturbation time for each wrestler (I'm sorry if this spoils it for anyone):

1. Shawn Michaels
2. The Undertaker
3. Steve Austin
4. Bret Hart
5. The Rock
6. Harley Race
7. Ricky Steamboat
8. Andre the Giant
9. Rey Mysterio
10. "Rowdy" Roddy Piper
11. Eddie Guerrero
12. Triple H
13. Gorgeous George
14. "Macho Man" Randy Savage
15. "Mr. Perfect" Curt Hennig
16. Ipecac Syrup personified aka John Cena
17. Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair(tied)
19. Edge
20. Jerry "The King" Lawler
21. Lou Thesz
22. Terry Funk
23. Hulk Hogan
24. Bruno Sammartino
25. Chris Jericho
26. Ted DiBiase
27. Fabulous Moolah
28. Classy Freddie Blassie
29. Randy Orton
30. Pat Patterson
31. The Iron Sheik
32. Jimmy Snuka
33. Mick Foley
34. Kurt Angle
35. Buddy Rogers
36. Gorilla Monsoon
37. Junkyard Dog
38. "Superstar" Billy Graham
39. Jake "The Snake" Roberts
40. The Big Show
41. Jack Brisco
42. Sgt. Slaughter
43. Kane
44. Nick Bockwinkel
45. D.A.R.E. program advocate Jeff Hardy
46. Dory Funk Jr.
47. Bob Backlund
48. Rick Rude
49. Batista
50. Killer Kowalski

For the most part, the list is not bad. For the minority part:

-I would rearrange the order a little. I'm sure if Kurt Angle, Mick Foley, Hulk Hogan, and Ric Flair were not signed to TNA, they'd be higher, but for business reasons, they were all lower than they should have been (any higher, and it would basically be free advertising for TNA). Angle and Foley should be in the top 15, while Hogan and Flair should go in the Top 10. Rey Mysterio is great, but he's not a Top 10 all time talent to me. I would put him maybe in the 30's. Eddie Guerrero was great, but 11? I actually remember when he became the Champ, and having a conversation with someone about how it was a bit of a headscratcher. I just never saw him as a top-card, main event wrestler. I'd put him in the 30's or 40's.

-The one omission I would make is Batista. He's a big guy, has a good look, drew money, and had some great matches, but here's the deciding factor: can you tell the story of pro wrestling without him? If they were writing a book about pro wrestling, everyone on this list, in theory, would have to be mentioned in the book. Batista is not all that special to me. Again, he's got some great attributes, but when WWE brings in a wrestler who looks just like you, has a similar move set, and is just about as good as you were, you aren't that special.

-WWE stole a lot of ideas from ECW, yet there is not one pure ECW talent on this list. No Tazz? No RVD? Those two were/are phenomenal in the ring. Tazz's promos made you want to run and hide, and he murdered anyone who he wrestled. RVD cut these great, laid-back promos that had crowds eating out of his hand, and he had such a great skill set in the ring. If the Big Show and Kane are on this list, then they could have found room for these guys.

-WCW was good enough to buy, but two of their biggest stars aren't good enough to be on this list? You can't seriously tell me that Big Show, Batista, Kane, Edge, and Eddie Guerrero are better than Lex Luger and Sting. Holy Shit.

-No Ultimate Warrior? I know he was a very polarizing figure (not great in the ring, some wrestlers questioned his love for the business, hard to work with) but WWE tagged him as the wrestler who they were going to build their product around for the 90's. The butts that were in the seats at Wrestlemania VI were there to see Hogan v. Warrior. Come on. To quote Christian, "like it or not, people will always remember The Ultimate Warrior."

-This wasn't a shock, but Chris Benoit was not on this list. If this DVD was released by someone other than WWE, he goes on this list somewhere.

That's my take.

I'm Back

I'm sorry I left you guys hanging. I'm sure all your lives were left hanging in the balance without my two cents. But, it's okay now. Football season is over. I've stopped eating my weight in Chex Mix and Snyder's Pretzels. I'm back. Be happy.